ATLANTA — Tuesday marks 'Strolling Thunder' at the state capitol, where parents and their little ones will get the ear of lawmakers to talk about the challenges of raising young children in Georgia and hopefully, push for change.
That includes raising awareness around teacher pay, improved access to family leave and ongoing issues around childcare, which worsened during the pandemic.
"We're just seeing a tremendous amount of stress in the system," Mindy Binderman of the Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students, said.
Meanwhile, Dr. Honey Meadows - who runs the childcare center on Atlanta's Westside - said she hears about those stresses daily, as she fields calls from parents looking for an open spot at the Westside School.
"We have a capacity of 92 students, and we have 90," she explained. "So we can't take any more students. Parents are looking for childcare. We have a waitlist that's over a year long."
In response, Meadows is working to expand her second location, sympathizing with families who are anxious for updates.
"Sometimes it really tugs at your heartstrings because people are desperate," she explained.
It's scenarios like this that advocates hope will grab state legislators' attention, and that families' cries for help will translate into increased funding and support.
"Childcare is expensive, and we have many families who are not able to find the care that they want, that they can afford," Ellyn Cochran with Quality Care for Children said.
While cost and accessibility have long been barriers to finding quality childcare, the pandemic only further strained the system, Cochran and Binderman emphasized. Centers continue to be strapped to find workers, as other industries increase pay opportunities.
"During the pandemic, childcare providers and centers stepped up and served as essential care providers," Cochran added. "And now after the pandemic, so many of them are making different choices because childcare is hard and the pay is not what it should be for the work and the experience these educators have to bring in the classroom."
When pay increases are possible, that cost burden can also trickle down to families.
"Childcare is expensive and getting more expensive because childcare providers need to pay teachers more to attract and retain those teachers," Binderman explained. "And so parents are struggling financially and they're struggling to be the best parents they can be and best employees they can be."
The average cost of infant childcare in Georgia is $637 a month, according to the Georgia Early Education Alliance. In metro Atlanta it’s even higher, but the Georgia Childcare and Parent Services (CAPS) could help cover that cost. The CAPS program expanded by 10,000 slots last summer, thanks in part to federal funding. But GEEARS is advocating for lawmakers to add $20 million in state funding to continue that increased enrollment and offset potential losses when federal funding runs out in 2024.
While the CAPS program focuses on low-income priority groups like student/parents, families with children with disabilities or unhoused families, other support for families includes Head Start or Early Head Start, which offer a sliding scale tuition, and in some cases, scholarships.
A spokesperson for Georgia's Department of Early Care and Learning said families are eligible based on one or more of these categories, while wait lists are location specific:
- Household income is at or below the poverty level.
- Receive public assistance (TANF, SSI, or SNAP)
- Child is in foster care.
- Family is experiencing homelessness according to the McKinney Vento definition.
As advocates push for more affordable options for families and worker support, Dr. Meadows said her team will do what they can. That means overstaffing when possible to deal with retention issues.
Like the parents who call her daily, she knows what's at stake.
"These are the years where relationships are made, our love for education, and so it can't be overstated how important birth to school age is," she added.
For more information or free help finding child care, reach out to the All GA Kids call center at 1-877-ALL-GA-KIDS, or 1-877-255-4254.